South Carolina's deadly roads: Why people keep dying and what can be done to stop it

In 2017, South Carolina again had the nation's highest fatality rate per mile traveled — by a wide margin.
Jason Clary, The Greenville News

A cross without a name is backed off the side of the Northbound side of Interstate 85 in Anderson County on Monday. Crosses, some decorated with personal items and name, are occasionally set out on the side of highways and interstate to remember loved ones who died in an auto accident. (Photo11: Ken Ruinard/Independent Mail)

High numbers of fatalities on Upstate roads are fast becoming the norm in a state known for high numbers of traffic fatalities.

With more than 300 traffic-related deaths in the last four years, Greenville County is among the worst in the state, and has led the state in three of the past four years. Anderson's fatality count (180 in the last four years) typically ranks among the state's six highest, too.

While DUI remains a persistent problem, there is no doubt that deadly new ones are emerging, too.

A 2017 study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute concluded that nearly 80 percent of crashes are linked to driver distraction of some sort.

Driver distraction/inattention was cited in 10 deaths in Greenville County and nine in Anderson County between 2013 and 2017, according to the Department of Public Safety.

The Independent Mail's Abe Hardesty, in this series of stories, offers an in-depth look at the problem, the likely causes and possible solutions: